Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 4951 to 4975 of 5000 results

4951. God Is Good, Life Isn’t Fair

Matthew 20:1-16

Illustration

Johnny Dean

I seriously doubt that the story of the early and late workers in the vineyard would make very many folks' Top Ten Parables list. It's the parable most everyone loves to hate. And for good reason! The parable runs against the grain of one of our most deeply cherished values, the value of hard work and just reward: The more you work and the more productive you are, the more you ought to get paid. Let's face it: this parable is just not fair! But, then again, as someone once said, "God is good, but life isn' ...

4952. God Voted for Me

Matthew 20:1-16

Illustration

King Duncan

I remember reading about the former President Calvin Coolidge, who was a man of very few words. His nickname, as you know, was "Silent Cal." Before he became the President of the United States, one of the offices he ran for and was elected to, was as mayor of Northampton, Massachusetts. It was a relatively close race and he won by 190 votes. The following day he was walking down the street, and a friend came up to him who was a Democrat (Coolidge was a Republican) and said, "Calvin, I read in the paper ...

4953. Evening-up the Slices

Matthew 20:1-16

Illustration

Leonard Sweet

An old "Family Circus" comic strip shows the two boys Jeff and Billy squabbling over the size of the slices of pie their mom has placed before them. "They aren't the same," Jeff pouts. Mom tries again, evening-up the slices. Still Jeff is upset. "They still aren't the same!" he whines. This time Mom uses a ruler and absolutely proves that both slices of pie are the exact same size. "But Mom," Jeff complains, "I want mine to be just like Billy's . . . only bigger!"

4954. Dirty Dignity

Matthew 21:23-32

Illustration

Leonard Sweet

Mike Rowe has made a career out of doing disgusting stuff. As the host of the Discovery Channel series "Dirty Jobs," Rowe has mucked-out, dug under, flushed, slogged, and slid through some of the most filthy and foul places on the planet. But whether he has been hanging from rafters or slipping through sewers, Rowe has consistently shown his viewers how even the most grungy, grimy, gross job still has its own dirty dignity. Rowe always offers respect to those who are "showing him the ropes," whether they ...

4955. A Story of Conversion

Romans 6:1-23

Illustration

Philip Schaff

John Chrysostom, known as the "the golden-mouthed" preacher of the 4th century, told the story of a remarkable conversion. The coastal city of Phoenice was well known for its lawlessness. In particular in the city was an actress who mesmerized many with her beauty but brought them low with her harlotry and the use of sorcery and drugs. Chrysostom wrote, "And indeed nothing was more vile than she was, when she was on the stage." Yet remarkably, by the grace of God, this notable lady was suddenly converted ...

4956. He Longs to Dust Us Off

Matthew 21:33-46

Illustration

King Duncan

What we need to see today is that this same Jesus can help us when we feel rejected. There is a touching story about how a teddy bear sat high on a shelf in a department store that majored in rapid turnover of stock. But there he sat. He was a pretty, brown teddy bear, but he had a problem. He had on a cute pair of bib overalls, but the button that held one strap over the shoulder was missing. The strap drooped by his side, and the bib hung over his chest. And as he sat there he got more and more dusty. No ...

4957. You Are Supposed to Love Me

Matthew 22:1-14

Illustration

King Duncan

Frederick William I ruled Prussia in the early eighteenth century. Frederick walked the streets of Berlin unattended, and when anyone displeased him, he did not hesitate to use his walking stick to thrash them. Berliners tried to keep their distance. One time, as Frederick William was pounding down the street, a citizen spied him but too late, and his attempt to slide quietly into a doorway proved a failure. "You," called out Frederick William, "where are you going?" "Into the house, Your Majesty," said ...

4958. If We Miss a Deadline

Mt 22:1-14

Illustration

King Duncan

A tough, old cowhand sauntered into a saloon and began drinking whiskey by the bottle. The more he drank, the more unruly he became, shooting holes in the ceiling and floor. Everybody was afraid to take on the old cowhand. Finally, a short, mild-mannered storekeeper walked up to the unruly cowhand and said, "I'll give you five minutes to get out of town." The old cowhand holstered his gun, pushed the whiskey bottle away, briskly walked out, got on his horse, and rode out of town. When he left, someone ...

4959. No, I’m Just Seasick

Mark 10:13-16

Illustration

Bill Bouknight

The writer Bill Henderson recalls meeting a man aboard a cruise ship who claimed to be an expert in guessing professions. "See that man over there," he said. "He is a physician." Bill checked and sure enough that was right. "How could you tell?" he asked the man. "Well," he said, "I saw the caring lines on his forehead and could tell he was a person of great compassion." Bill Henderson pointed to someone else and said, "What about him? What does he do?" "That's a lawyer," the expert said. Bill checked and ...

4960. Everyone Is Invited

Matthew 22:1-14

Illustration

Bill Bouknight

The writer Drew Duke recalled from her childhood her second grade Valentine's Day party. Several days earlier a big decorated box had been placed at the front of the room by the teacher. It had a slit in the top. Each student had been invited to bring valentines addressed to friends and to drop them into the box. Then on Valentine's Day, one student was designated by the teacher as the postman to distribute the cards. Earlier that week Drew's mother had bought a package of 35 valentine cards. Drew asked ...

4961. Just Showing Up

Matt. 20:1-16; 22:1-14

Illustration

Leonard Sweet

Director/actor Woody Allen is known for a lot of quotes. But maybe his most famous quote is this one. Anyone want to guess what it is? "Ninety percent of life is just showing up." But Woody Allen is famously wrong. Ninety percent of life is what we do AFTER we show up. Why do we want to believe Allen's computations so badly? We eagerly embrace Woody's calculus because it takes us off the hook for all but ten percent of our lifetime of screw-ups, fall-flats, and melt-downs. It is easy to just "be there." It ...

4962. Choose One Chair

Matthew 22:15-22

Illustration

Brett Blair

Luciano Pavarotti said that when he was a boy, his father, a baker, introduced him to the wonders of song. He urged him to work hard to develop his voice. Arrigo Pola, a professional tenor in his hometown of Modena, Italy, took him as a pupil. Pavarotti also enrolled in a teachers college. On graduating, he asked his father, "Shall I be a teacher or a singer?" "Luciano," his father replied, "if you try to sit on two chairs, you will fall between them. For life, you must choose one chair." Pavarotti, later ...

4963. Treasure Underfoot

Matthew 22:15-22

Illustration

Johnny Dean

A few years ago archaeologists at a dig in the biblical city of Eshtemoa dug up 62 pounds of 15th century jewelry. The gems and silver, taken separately, are worth about $7000. But the jewelry, the combination of the silver and the gems, has an estimated worth of over five million dollars! Do you know where the jewelry was found? It was buried about 18 inches beneath the dirt floor of a cottage that has been continuously inhabited for 500 years. People had been living within reach of a treasure, but for ...

4964. Dual Citizenship

Matthew 22:15-22

Illustration

Bill Bouknight

What a country is America! As Erma Bombeck says, "You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4th, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers in front of the White House, but by family picnics where kids throw frisbees, the potato salad gets soggy, and the flies die from happiness." Some years ago in a U.S. District Court, I had the privilege of participating in a naturalization ceremony. Some sixty foreign-born persons were ready to take their citizenship vows. Every place on ...

4965. We Need Peacemakers

Matthew 22:15-22; Romans 12:18

Illustration

Bill Bouknight

When we read the "Letters to the Editor" section of our local newspaper, the anger, resentment, and prejudice we encounter there are often pathetic. I'm reminded of a pastor who was hospitalized. The chairman of the Administrative Board came to visit. He said, "Pastor, the Board passed our solution asking God to help you toward a full recovery. The vote was 23 to 18." The divisiveness in our country is corroding our unity. Has talk-radio driven up the anger level in our various communities? And how can ...

4966. For the Right Reasons

Mt 22:34-46

Illustration

King Duncan

In her book, Memories of War, Promises of Peace, Sister Mary Jo Leddy writes about her parents' World War II experiences. Her father, Jack, was a surgeon in the Allied army. Jack, stationed in a French town, often went to a nearby church for rest, refuge, sanctuary and prayer. For him it was a special and holy place. Forty years later, he returned to the village with his wife and daughters, insisting that they all visit the precious chapel. When they reached the church, Leddy was delighted and wanted to go ...

4967. Loving Ourselves

Matthew 22:34-40

Illustration

James McCormick

She was a beautiful Scandinavian girl. She had come to the hotel room of Dr. and Mrs. Walter Trobisch for counseling, just one day after they had given a lecture at one of the universities of northern Europe. As they talked about her problems, one basic issue kept coming up – one that seemed to be at the root at all her problems. She could not love herself! In fact, she hated herself so much that she was only a step away from ending her own life. She had been raised in a very religious home. Her parents ...

4968. The Pursuit of Happiness

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

Illustration

Leonard Sweet

“The pursuit of happiness." It's a phrase with which every school child is familiar. But what a phrase . . . a phrase that is foundational to our national identity and part of the introductory insistence of our Founding Fathers' Declaration of Independence. “Happiness" is an extraordinary “demand" for political revolutionaries. Equality. Democracy. Liberty. Freedom. Those are what we expect from our fiery ancestors. But life, liberty . . . and “the pursuit of happiness?" No matter how intellectually gifted ...

4969. The Wise Old Cat

1 Thessalonians 1:1-8

Illustration

Wise old cat observing a kitten chasing its tail: “Why are you chasing your tail so?" asks the old wise cat. The kitten replies, “I have learned that the best thing for a cat is happiness, and happiness is in my tail. Therefore, I am chasing it, and when I catch it, I shall have happiness." The wise old cat responds, “I too have judged that happiness is in my tail. But I notice that whenever I chase it, it keeps running away from me. And when I go about my business of being a proper cat, it just seems to ...

4970. The Statistical Choice

Illustration

Staff

Why are children aborted? The Alan Guttmacher Institute (the research arm of Planned Parenthood) states: 1% are victims of incest or rape 1% had fetal abnormalities 4% had a doctor who said their health would worsen if they continued the pregnancy 50% said they didn't want to be a single parent or they had problems in current relationships 66% stated they could not afford a child 75% said the child would interfere with their lives.

4971. Barely Born

Illustration

Charles McCarry can claim a varied career. In addition to being the author of The Tears of Autumn and The Last Supper, he served as assistant to the Secretary of Labor in the Eisenhower cabinet and did two stints in the CIA. But he almost wasn't born. Says McCarry, "My mother became pregnant with me at the age of 39. She had nearly died while giving birth to my only sibling. Her doctor, who believed the second pregnancy was a serious threat to her life, advised an abortion. The advice made sense, but my ...

4972. God's Accidents

Illustration

Staff

Rowland V. Bingham, founder of the Sudan Interior Mission, was once seriously injured in an automobile accident. He was rushed to a hospital in critical condition. The following day, when he regained consciousness, he asked the nurse what he was doing there. "Don't try to talk now, just rest," she replied. "You have been in an accident." "Accident? Accident!" exclaimed Dr. Bingham. "There are no accidents in the life of a Christian. This is just an incident in God's perfect leading."

4973. Cause of Injury

Illustration

Staff

A response to an insurance company: I am writing in response to your request for additional information. In block #3 of the accident form, I put "trying to do the job alone" as the cause of my accident. You said in your letter that I should explain more fully, and I trust that the following details will be sufficient. I am a bricklayer by trade. On the date of the accident I was working alone on the roof of a new six story building. When I completed my work, I found that I had about 500 pounds of brick ...

4974. Rebuilding Your Broken World

Illustration

Gordon MacDonald

In Rebuilding Your Broken World, Gordon MacDonald suggests twenty-five questions to help develop accountability and invite feedback. If we desire to grow, we should submit ourselves to a spiritual mentor and answer these questions honestly. 1. How is your relationship with God right now? 2. What have you read in the Bible in the past week? 3. What has God said to you in this reading? 4. Where do you find yourself resisting Him these days? 5. What specific things are you praying for in regard to yourself? 6 ...

4975. Challenging Questions

Illustration

John Wesley was so concerned with building a righteous fellowship that he devised a series of questions for his followers to ask each other every week. Some found this rigorous system of inquiry too demanding and left. Today, the very idea of such a procedure would horrify many churchgoers. Yet some wisely follow just such a practice. Chuck Swindoll for example, has seven questions that he and a group of fellow pastors challenge each other with periodically: 1. Have you been with a woman anywhere this past ...

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Antonyms: deficient, imperfect

Showing 4951 to 4975 of 5000 results

4951. God Is Good, Life Isn’t Fair

Matthew 20:1-16

Illustration

Johnny Dean

4952. God Voted for Me

Matthew 20:1-16

Illustration

King Duncan

4953. Evening-up the Slices

Matthew 20:1-16

Illustration

Leonard Sweet

4954. Dirty Dignity

Matthew 21:23-32

Illustration

Leonard Sweet

4955. A Story of Conversion

Romans 6:1-23

Illustration

Philip Schaff

4956. He Longs to Dust Us Off

Matthew 21:33-46

Illustration

King Duncan

4957. You Are Supposed to Love Me

Matthew 22:1-14

Illustration

King Duncan

4958. If We Miss a Deadline

Mt 22:1-14

Illustration

King Duncan

4959. No, I’m Just Seasick

Mark 10:13-16

Illustration

Bill Bouknight

4960. Everyone Is Invited

Matthew 22:1-14

Illustration

Bill Bouknight

4961. Just Showing Up

Matt. 20:1-16; 22:1-14

Illustration

Leonard Sweet

4962. Choose One Chair

Matthew 22:15-22

Illustration

Brett Blair

4963. Treasure Underfoot

Matthew 22:15-22

Illustration

Johnny Dean

4964. Dual Citizenship

Matthew 22:15-22

Illustration

Bill Bouknight

4965. We Need Peacemakers

Matthew 22:15-22; Romans 12:18

Illustration

Bill Bouknight

4966. For the Right Reasons

Mt 22:34-46

Illustration

King Duncan

4967. Loving Ourselves

Matthew 22:34-40

Illustration

James McCormick

4968. The Pursuit of Happiness

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

Illustration

Leonard Sweet

4969. The Wise Old Cat

1 Thessalonians 1:1-8

Illustration

4970. The Statistical Choice

Illustration

Staff

4971. Barely Born

Illustration

4972. God's Accidents

Illustration

Staff

4973. Cause of Injury

Illustration

Staff

4974. Rebuilding Your Broken World

Illustration

Gordon MacDonald

4975. Challenging Questions

Illustration

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